8 August 2014: The Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) held a training workshop, titled ‘Mutually Agreed Terms: Contracts for Making Access and Benefit Sharing Possible,’ to prepare Pacific Island States for the upcoming implementation of the Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization (ABS).

The workshop focused on building capacity in negotiating contracts with users of genetic resources in line with the provisions of the Nagoya Protocol, including fair and equitable benefit-sharing based in mutually agreed terms (MAT) and with the prior informed consent (PIC) of communities holding genetic resources. The workshop also addressed implementation and use of other elements provided for by the Protocol such as ABS checkpoints and the sharing of non-monetary benefits.

The Nagoya Protocol was adopted in 2010 and will enter into force on 12 October 2014, after being ratified by 50 CBD Parties, including Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Samoa and Vanuatu. The training workshop was held 5-8 August 2014, in Nadi, Fiji. It was co-organized by the ABS Capacity Development Initiative with the support of the University of the South Pacific, the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). [SPREP Press Release][Nagoya Protocol Website]